Zooplankton feeding by corals underestimated

Research by marine biologists from Wageningen University has shown that feeding on zooplankton by scleractinian corals has been greatly underestimated.

Octocorals found to be reef builders

Scientists from Taiwan and Israel have found that octocorals are important reef builders. This exciting discovery makes us rethink the very nature of coral reefs.

Flatworms compete with corals for zooplankton

Epizoic coral flatworms have been found to compete with their coral host for zooplankton. This finding is in agreement with the theory that symbiotic coral flatworms are parasitic.

Small polyps do capture zooplankton

Small polyped stony corals are often believed to simply rely on strong lighting and dissolved nutrients. But even these corals capture significant amounts of plankton.

Gymnothorax javanicus

Written by Tim Wijgerde

Taxonomy:

Gymnothorax javanicus (Bleeker, 1859)

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Subphylum: Vertebrata

Superclass: Osteichthyes

Class: Actinopterygii

Subclass: Neopterygii

Infraclass: Teleostei

Superorder: Elopomorpha

Order: Anguilliformes

Suborder: Muraenoidei

Family: Muraenidae

Subfamily: Muraeninae

Genus: Gymnothorax

Species: javanicus

Gymnothorax javanicus occurs throughout the Indo-Pacific, from the Red Sea and East Africa to the Marquesas and Oeno Atoll (Pitcairn Group), north to the Ryukyu and Hawaiian islands, and south to New Caledonia and the Austral Islands. They are often found in symbiosis with cleaner shrimp from the Periclemenes genus, at depths between 0 - 50 m.

Author:

Aquarius Diving Club, Egypt

References:

RokAjaxSearch

Zooplankton feeding by corals underestimated

Octocorals found to be reef builders

Flatworms compete with corals for zooplankton

Small polyps do capture zooplankton